unclevlad

Wrong question. What are the *Browns* going to do? Cuz they're still on the hook for Watson's money thanks to likely The Worst Contract Ever. (trademark pending), so their maneuvering room is likely sharply limited. Let's speculate Watson gets suspended for 8 games for violating the personal conduct policy. That might seem lowball...and I think Watson deserves more...but this might be what can be made to stick. In that case, I don't think they go with Mayfield, they try to get by with Brissett. Mayfield might be the choice if Brissett gets hurt, or plays like Trevor Siemian. And even if it's longer...it's SO hard to try to bring Mayfield back into the fold at this point. Maybe when it's the full year, especially if it's before training camp starts. I think it likely that Watson's going to be their QB, tho. It's the NFL, on a disciplinary matter. They're slower than molasses on Pluto. And the fact, now, that the Texans are involved as an organization, means they'll almost certainly announce their decision against both, at the same time. So it's quite possible that the NFL's clock has just been reset. This may not resolve until the start of NEXT season at this rate.

Sinestro Sauron Saruman a veritable plethora...

https://www.cnn.com/2022/06/08/us/american-airlines-lawsuit-man-17-days-in-jail/index.html#:~:text=(CNN) An Arizona man is,2020%2C according to court documents. The challenge, to me, is whether AA folllowed their rules properly. If they were even just sloppy? The guy seems to have a good case.

Q from Next Gen, not the Bond movies

The bigger issue for GS is that Draymond's focused only on trying to get into the Celtics' heads...and not playing. Steph's expected to play, but we will have to see whether he's restricted in any way.

Felix Faust

Fox needs a new analyst....

At the WCWS, UCLA pulled off an upset: they actually beat Oklahoma in the first game of the semis. Not to worry. The next game was 15-0 Oklahoma...in 5 innings. <eyes glaze over> Game 1 vs. Texas...it's bottom of the 4th, Oklahoma already up 11-1 and hitting with 1 out, a run in, and runners on 1st and 3rd. DOMINATION. EDIT: Oh, dear. The run rule that's in place the rest of the year? DOES NOT APPLY to the WCWS championship series. OU led 12-1 going into the bottom of the 5th...which would've invoked it quite comfortably...but it's not in play. So they just led off their 5th with back to back blasts. 13 outs made by OU...13 hits, with 6 HRs. With 5 more outs, the question may be whether they can score 20....

Because.....they've got enough tape on Mayfield to know he's not the answer? Because Mayfield's contract this year is $19M? And while he may well be better...he's not worth $19M. Oh, AND he's a free agent after this year, so he's something of a lose-lose...if he by some miracle has a good year, you're looking at HOW much to sign him? Because they don't feel like helping the Browns out of the cesspool they dove into? Because they're concerned about the maturity/accountability issues? Seems like there's lots of good, plausible reasons.

With the revelations about their involvement, the Texans have been added as defendants to the Watson lawsuits, as facilitators. Elsewhere, semi-related, the Browns have pretty much burned every bridge with Mayfield. Both sides "mutually agreed" to excuse him from mandatory OTAs next week. Granted that we all figured he was gone, but this is a tangible indicator of the schism. AND Watson's situation keeps getting messier. The Browns are quite thoroughly doing their angels....in yellow snow..... EDIT: on the down side, what this will do...Watson's legal team said they will add the Texans, but it hasn't happened yet...is make the timeline for this, that much longer, which may well mean the NFL gets to what they do best...nothing...for longer.

Just tell him No. Because you're also penalizing players who want to run moderate, but not abusive, setups. Reduced END is also just one route; he can go with a very high REC, and plan on spending phase 1 recovering quite often. If melee, he can manipulate END costs...15 STR, +3d6 HA, then martial arts, for example. Also, buying SPD 12 is spending 70 points there, that no one else is spending. That's a big chunk right there. What were you doing with that villain? Were you in some manner over-compensating, perhaps giving too many low-impact limitations, so he could make up a fair bit of the points spent?

Or, one can recognize that it's been the home team every time. Rangers shouldn't get complacent, tho, having taken out Carolina in game 7 after 6 straight home wins.

Duke: you're probably right that by RAW, no special power is needed. That said, I'd probably still define it because it's expected that a decapitation *should* kill. The advantage of something like Hidden Life is it doesn't matter how much damage the body takes, or where. The character cannot be killed by typical damage. It requires something else. By the same token, tho...destroy the Hidden Life, and the target is instantly obliterated. Classic D&D example of Hidden Life would be the D&D lich's phylactery.

That isn't Trigger, it's Always On. Trigger is an advantage. What's the gain here? Uncontrolled is also an advantage; it lets a power remain active without further effort...so an Uncontrolled attack power does damage until its END is gone. (Uncontrolled requires Constant.) An Uncontrolled defense remains up even if the user's stunned. What you may be thinking of is No Conscious Control, which is mostly intended for plot device powers. NCC becomes active at the GM's whim. Always On means exactly that...it is always in effect, the character can't turn it on or off, it's always at full strength. I actually did this once...stole the radiation accident origin, built a brick who had an Always On Drain. He liked to meet new people with his hand out, sayin, "how ya doin?" and hoping they'd shake. ZAP!!!! It was a standard Drain, so it'd wear off fast. Yeah, he was a sick puppy. And loved to grapple someone. If they didn't break out REAL quick, forget it, because it was a STR drain. Something else too, IIRC, but that was a LONG time ago..... Drain (or Transform, as you prefer), No Range, Requires Skin to Skin, 0 END, Persistent, Always On. Bingo. Actually, not quite: there is a No Conscious Control in there too, as she can't choose what gets drained.

Warning. Have a fresh box of Kleenex before playing the video above. I hope he's right that this may offer an opportunity for meaningful reform, but I cannot say I expect it.

And Wilt settled into the post, on both offense and defense. He wasn't running around, chasing out to the 3 point line, switching, etc.

From NYT: This is far, far more than admitted in the past; Watson acknowledges 40 over 5 years. 66 in 17 months is close to 1 a week. For the Texans, supplying a venue might be OK, but an NDA to quell complaints is going to draw the league's attention. For subscribers: https://www.nytimes.com/2022/06/07/sports/football/deshaun-watson.html The Browns have to be dreading the fallout. The depositions and evidence might not show criminal issues...but the player conduct policy doesn't need that. I think that's going to lead the league to hammer him. Eventually. Stupid league is so damn freakin slow.

That's linked but it isn't a Trigger, unless the mental attack requires some special setup. A classic Trigger would be a trap on a pressure plate. Takes a turn to set up (Extra Time) but when that time is expired, the power does NOT activate. It's prepped, it's ready...it's waiting for an external event...someone of sufficient mass stepping on the plate. (Pressure plates might be set to NOT trigger on, say, 10 pounds or less, so a bird landing on it doesn't set it off.) Some examples of Trigger: --parry and riposte: requires that you can act, usually. The attack is your HKA sword. The trigger is "when I successfully Block a melee attack." So when you make the block, you immediately get to roll a counterattack. Most GMs will require that you're Holding; this can't be done if you abort. --a bomb might have 2 or 3 Triggers...if it's disturbed (a vial of mercury...if it shakes, it triggers the bomb), countdown timer, or radio. Note that the bomb itself might have Extra Time (5 minutes), and RSR Demolitions. That's to set it up...and that's the bomb maker. It can be carried by a grunt (the mercury trigger NOT enabled or not used) to where it's set to go off. Grunt sets it in place, activates the timer, and moves to a safe distance...with the RF activator. Also note that the RF activator *itself* may have a Trigger...it's actually a dead man switch. STOP pressing the button, it triggers the bomb. --a security system. Say it has a motion sensor. When the sensor detects motion, it activates lights and cameras, and maybe locks down windows/exits. Intruder notifications get sent. The system works with no further intervention once it's armed. There are some intentional Triggers; that's allowed. A power might require extensive setup, like the bomb, but the trigger might be "when I say Ooompa-Loompa." Or when I say "there's no place like home" while clicking my heels together.

I wonder if Montgomery is being passed over because he doesn't have the on-field decision making experience. Nevin's been a manager, IIRC. It's not surprising, tho. MVP-Past and MVP-Present, and under .500? Angels have the 8th highest payroll in baseball, but with this losing streak, it's not that surprising. But their injury list is loaded...and overloaded with pitchers. 2 starters went on the long-term DL...one's reported as having suffered a setback and had to shut down throwing. The other is looking to avoid (back) surgery and hopes to return this season...suggesting he probably *won't*. Those are from late May. 3 more starters are on it too; a couple are listed as day-to-day now...but that, I believe, just says they're eligible to be taken off the injured list, not that they're close to coming back. 2 relievers look to be gone long-term as well. Another factor this year is that Syndergaard is a free agent after this season. Debatable what he'll get; granted that he *can be* exceptional but the numbers show some notable declines, and he's already lost most of 2 different seasons from injuries. Also, and worse: Ohtani's contract goes to arbitration next year. That's gonna mean another major chunk of cash. Looking at the Angels team stats...on offense, they have no depth. Matt Duffy's hitting, as a utility IF, but a lot of em are .220 and lower. That's a factor in why they haven't been able to sustain the start, I suspect. Maddon did well with the Rays because, IIRC, they had young, versatile rosters. That's not the Angels.

Not true. They don't have to. 6E1 384: Linked says, power B can only be used when power A is used. In the example above, the character can choose Blast Blast + Drain Blast + Drain + Flash The case you describe is when A is linked to B, and B is linked to A, or Jointly Linked. Also note that Linked is always a Limitation, altho in some cases it can be -0. You can also have a case like Desolid, costs END only to activate linked to Flight 20", x8 NC, 0 END LS: self contained breathing When you turn on the Desolid, sure, the LS can kick in with no drawback...but the Flight does have a mild drawback (Knockback rules). So you don't have to. Or maybe you put Invis Power Effects on your Desolid, so it's not glaringly obvious you're desolid. Flying would make maintaining the illusion of solidity...trickier. So, you wouldn't have to use it. Here, it's just saying that when you're solid, you can't fly. The text on 6E1 385: does not change anything from 384. "When a character uses" talks about the case that the character has chosen to use both. It does NOT imply a requirement to do so.

Follow the money trail, man...

Many of the highest-scoring games have also been at the tail end of the season. In '78, David Thompson and George Gervin were fighting for the scoring title. Last game of the regular season...Thompson scored 73 to take the lead. Gervin came back with 63, to edge Thompson out. IIRC, David Robinson scored 71 in the Spurs' last game in '94, to take the scoring title from Shaq. I don't expect another 100 point game, ever. Closest is Kobe's 81. That was 2006, when the Lakers were still basically down, and Kobe turned in an insane game because...he had to. Turn that into OT? Who knows. Klay Thompson had 37 in a quarter...maybe, just maybe, that could be extended to a full game. Odds are it wouldn't be needed, but who knows. The one I never expect to see broken is Wilt's scoring average. In that season, he averaged over 50 a game, scoring over 4000 points. Best anyone else has done: Jordan, 37 ppg. When he was the team offense; the 2nd leading scorer on that team was Charles Oakley, at < 15 ppg, and only John Paxson averaged over 10 among the rest of the team. And still...almost 1000 fewer points, basically 13 a game fewer. BUT: also remember that Wilt made it to the NBA Finals only once in those extreme-scoring years. He won in 67 with the 76ers...averaging 24 a game. Minutes limitations is part of that, too. Another is travel. Taking the '63 season...the middle of Wilt's scoring heyday. Boston, Cincy, Philly, NY in the east; San Fran, Lakers, Detroit, St. Louis, and Baltimore in the West. San Fran and the Lakers obviously had to travel a ton, the rest wouldn't have been too bad. Another aspect is the attention today. Everyone knows when someone's scoring like that. Flip side: the rest of your team knows when you're taking that much attention away from them. And that means, taking money out of their next contract nowadays. There are almost no low-post centers any more. There are those who can play in the post; Embiid is scary. But most don't live there as Chamberlain and Russell did. Which points to another record that'll never be broken: single-season rebounds per game. According to Basketball Reference, Chamberlain and Russell account for the top *18*. Chamberlain averaged 27 RPG in 60-61. Since 1990, the highest would be Rodman's 18.7. Since 2000, Drummond has the highest at 16. And this drop is only going to continue, most likely; when 3's are shot so regularly, long rebounds are more common, and those get scattered. I think good teams lose to bad teams more often because: a) the talent is much more spread out, so a lot of teams with poor records aren't *that* much worse than middling-decent teams. b) travel c) distractions!!! d) scheduling, at times...4 games in 5 days. e) game style. Lots of 3's, lots and lots and LOTS of undisciplined play f) team chemistry is impossible to maintain EDIT: one more tidbit. Devin Booker scored 70 in 2017. I vaguely remember; that was a game that brought notable national attention to him. Other than that, no one's topped 62 since Kobe: Carmelo and Steph. 61, 5 times: Lebron once, Lillard and Harden twice each. 60, 9 times. (Plus Kobe's incredible 60 in his last game.)

Villains being villains, they tended to be laid-back, laissez-faire parents. So some of the kids will <gasp> want to be Heroes!!!! While others will continue the family traditions. Oh, the angst when the hero has to go after his villain girl friend.............

Too narrow. Bottom 2 in each league. 3 game series, #14 AL vs. #15 NL and vice versa. Winners play another 3 game series to stay in. The 3 losing teams get relegated. The problem is, how many AAA clubs play in a major-league level venue? El Paso plays in a 7500 seat stadium. It's a logistical nightmare in so many ways. In principle at least, I love the notion of relegation...but the sports industry has to be built more on that model. It's something that perhaps could've been done up through...maybe the 60s? Maybe 50s. Before the big stadium reconstruction boom; definitely before free agency changed everything. Each franchise today is worth $1B, except Miami...they're only $990M. Tigers and Rockies are ~ $1.4B. KC is ~$1.1B. Washington's $2B tho. How much of this is lost if they're relegated?

Could be worse. The Tigers have 6. In 2 more games. The bad news for Mr. P is...the Rocks have played 32 home games...they're .500 at home, altho that's still not good...and only 22 road games where they're awful. And they've only played 12 divisional games so far. Baseball isn't helped by the fact that 8 teams are already close to losing contact for even the wild card spots. Turnarounds are possible...but not likely. Having so many teams that even by the 4th will be looking to next season...is not good.